Folding step for vehicles.



E. H. BRADLEY.

FOLDING STEP FOR VEHICLES.

APPLICATION FILED MAYI5. I9I7- L283Q Patented Oct. 30, 1917.

EARL H. BRADLEY, 0F I-IIGBEE, MISSOURI.

FOLDING STEP FOR VEHICLES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 30, 1917.

Application filed May 15, 1917. Serial No. 168,732.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EARL H. BRADLESQH citizen of the United States, residing at Higbee, in the county of Randolph, State of Missouri, have invented certain new and usefulful Improvements in Folding Steps for Vehicles; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention is an improvement in vehicle steps and has particular reference to a folding step therefor.

An object of the invention is to provide a folding step of simple and improved construction connected to the lowermost stationary step of a railway car orother vehicle and readily and quickly adjustable to operative and inoperative positions.

The inventive idea involved is capable of receiving a variety of mechanical expressions, one of which, for the purpose of illustrating the invention, is shown in the accompanying drawing, wherein Figure 1 is a side elevation of a folding step in operative position.

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the step in folded or inoperative position.

Fig. 3 is a front elevation showing the step in operative position.

Fig. 4 is a section on the line 4l4 of Fig.

Referring more particularly to the drawing, the numeral 5 indicates the lowermost stationary step of a railway car of a vehicle having secured transversely to each end thereof a supporting bar 6, the ends of which project slightly beyond the front edge of the step and provided with hinges 7.

- Connected to these hinges are the hanger arms 8 which depend in a vertical direction when the folding step is in operative position, said hanger arms being connected intermediate their ends by a brace 9. The lower ends of the hanger arms 8 have pivotally connected thereto the step supporting bars 10 secured to the under side of the folding step 11 by suitable fasteners. Each end of the step 11 has secured thereto one end of a brace 12 preferably made in sec- Gopies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressmg the Commissioner of Patents,

tions pivoted at adjacent ends so that the step may be folded, the other end of the brace being secured to the bar 6 in any preferred manner. a Means for adjusting the step 11 to its folded position preferably comprises afiexible element 13 having one end secured to the intermediate portion of the hangers G and extending downwardly therefrom to a pulley 14 carried by the adjacent supporting bar 10 and from thence to the forward end of said bar and upwardly to a point where the other end of said flexible element is secured at any convenient place adjacent the step It will thus be seen that by pulling upwardly on the flexible element 18 the folding step 11 will first be swung to a substantially vertical position and in engagement with the hangers 8 and further pull upon said element 13 will swing the hangers 8 about their hinges 7 until the folding step is adjusted to the position shown in Fig. 2. By simply grasping the folding step 11 and pulling outwardly from the same it may be adjusted from its inoperative to the extend passes, the intermediate portion of said flex-- ible element extending'around the forward longitudinal edge of saidfoldable step and from thence upwardly to a point adjacent said stationary step whereby a pull upon said flexible element will adjust said folding step :and hanger arms to a position above said stationary step.

In testimony whereof, I affix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

v EARL H. BRADLEY. Witnesses:

J. T. RANDOLPH, J. H. BRADLEY.

Washington, D. 0.? 

